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Tainui Group Holdings has secured the first consents it needs from Hamilton City Council for its Ruakura logistics hub.
Chief executive Chris Joblin says work will start next 12 months on the first 13.5 hectare stage of the inland port and surrounding 34.5 hectare logistics zone.
He says the big picture is Ruakura is part of a new development larger than the Auckland CBD bringing fresh life and jobs to east Hamilton.
Mr Joblin says as a neutral hub in the upper North Island freight system it will give importers and exporters freedom to choose between ports and shipping lines, and not necessarily be tied into Auckland or Tauranga.
The efficient hubbing of freight will get thousands of trucks off the roads each year and make better use of the Government's investment in rail.
In the second quarter of this year TGH will call for expressions of interest from port operators to manage the inland port, which will eventually be capable of handling up to a million containers a year.
Once it's full developed the area will cover 480 hectares, including a light commercial knowledge zone, residential housing, and large areas of green and open space.
TGH is the commercial arm of Waikato Tainui.
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